in a bind

I've been making my very own bias binding. Oh yes, I have.

The front is made from a vintage sheet. The other is a cute check cotton. The check will be a trim on some 80's shorts I am yet to make for my nephews. I followed the tutorial at made (naturally). I the following advice for those wishing to make bias binding:

• a small amount of fabric goes a long way, my fat quarter made over 7 metres!
• let the little taggy bits overhang more than you think when joining strips together
• keep your fingers out of the way when you are ironing the folds. Burnies.

Checking out the other creative types here.
S.

buy nothing new for october

Hot on the heels of my year-long challenge to only give meaningful (handmade, upcycled, second-hand, ethically-sourced) gifts, I've decided to up the ante.

Dare you to join me...

Oh crap. I need a new pram to fit both the small chiddlers.

tread lightly: skin care

My little one developed a sore, red, dribbly rash on her face over the last couple of weeks. Changing laundry detergent helped, but I also wanted something immediate to soothe her poor sore skin. I lamented to my child & community nurse last visit that several commercial potions and lotions I had tried hadn't worked. The only one with some short-term success was one containing "soothing oatmeal" along with several other chemicals. So she suggested just oatmeal. In the bath. *blink*. Just put it in a stocking and kind of swish it around, she said. Too embarrassed to ask if oatmeal was different to rolled oats, I toddled home.

But you know, I gave it a go. With rolled oats, because that's what I had in the cupboard. And it worked! I had to kind of squish the soggy oats in the stocking to make the 'milk' come out. I also stopped using any other products, in case she was reacting to them, or they were further irritating the rash. The redness didn't miraculously disappear, but over the next few hours it calmed down. I've even taken to making a mini-pot with warm water and just dabbing it on the skin with my finger. So there you go...oatmeal bath for soothing rashy skin!

Next on the agenda, much to my darling's absolute mortification is my Great Natural Deodorant Challenge. I am currently trying the first of two recipes, and am quite surprised by the results!
S.

meaningful gift: flowery outfit

Hands up who loves a twirly skirt? I do, and I hope my friend's gorgeous little daughter liked hers, too. She turned two this week, so I made her a springy skirt, prettied up a white tee-shirt with matching self-covered buttons and even made a matching hair clip.

Details: Fabrics from Spotlight, tee from Big W.
Followed the tutorial for the Market Skirt at made
Hair clip inspired by loveliness spied here while visiting creative spaces
There are a few more of these sets on the cards in the next couple of weeks!
S.

found: and it was all yellow

A happy little teapot in my favourite colour, and a spicy linen tea-towel in browns, oranges and yellow too. I was able to sit down and share a cuppa with an old friend over the weekend. I'm a bit sad that this pot probably won't see many sessions with lovely friends, for a little while, anyway. One of the only drawbacks of moving away!
Oggling other lovely finds here.
S.

meaningful gift: birthday hero

An invitation to a birthday party(on a Friday arvo- lovely, clever parents!).

 Some super green shiny fabric, my sewing machine and about 45 minutes.

 Our first handmade gift for a school friend.

I felt just a little bit sick taking my boy to the party with his mum-made present for the birthday boy. Is taking handmade a form of social suicide? I thought I was oh-so-clever until self doubt crept in. I wonder if the birthday boy liked it?

S.

in stitches. little spring

I have been having a little trouble finding great vintage sheets for my stash. But pillowcases, I've found stacks! I also absent-mindedly threw a roll of shirring elastic into my basket a few months ago. This weekend, the two came together in a beautiful epiphany. I present you: my

CuteShirredDressAndBloomersSetUpcycledFromOnePillowcase!


Ta-daaa!



 Want to make one? Go on, it's easy. You can do it.

You will need:

• a lovely pillowcase from an op shop, freshly washed
• a roll of shirring elastic
• some pretty ribbon
• some sewing thread
• a sewing machine
• some elastic for the waistband- half a metre would be plenty, I used 1cm wide stuff
• scissors

1. Lay a dress that fits your baby on the folded end of the pillowcase, to get an idea of the length and width you need. Cut the excess fabric away. This job is made more delightful if you say "chomp, chomp, chomp" as you cut. Don't cut the folded side! You should end up with a long rectangle.



  

2. Do a very nice little rolled hem on both the long sides of your rectangle. 




3. Roll some shirring elastic onto an empty bobbin. Not too loose, not too tight. Got it?



4. Using the elastic in the bobbin and thread in the top, sew a few rows of straight stitch. It's worth having a practice with your machine first. I found that increasing the tension and using a smallish stitch length worked for me. A distance of about 1.5cm between the rows looked good to me.



5. With right sides together, sew the side seam (the short sides of the rectangle). Finish with a zig-zag stitch, or overlock if you are fancy.





6. Sew some lengths of ribbon to the front and back.





7. Marvel at the cuteness of chubby baby shoulders.



Seriously. Marvel.

And if you want to, you could make a little pair of bloomers from the leftovers. I followed this tutorial for a diaper cover, only instead of elastic casing for the legs, I used the shirring elastic in the bobbin on a tiny roll hem.

I hope you have a go, really so easy. I am now considering adding shirring elastic to all manner of fabrics. Tea towels?
more creative spaces here

S.

tread lightly

To look at me, you wouldn't know that a hippy-greenie lurks beneath the surface. I am really, really suburban. But then we moved near this

(aah. so looking forward to summer really hitting)

and watched some of these guys make their merry way, quite literally, past our doorstep.

                                 

(picture from here)

Well, almost. We aren't quite posh enough to live on the water. But we did do some crazy shenanigan driving following a whale family up the coast, stopping at lookouts and beaches.

Now don't get me wrong, I've bought my share of Enyo cloths and had a go at scrubbing grout with baking soda. But in my deeply conditioned brain, clean isn't clean unless it burns your nostril hairs. The stronger the chemicals, the better. "Household Strength"- bah! Pass me the Hospital Grade. Just put on some gloves first. And maybe use some tongs. But I am changing. I am worried. I have concerns about the chemicals my family is ingesting, and the ones I am sending out for others to ingest.

So, I am on a mini-mission. To check out gentler products for the home.

First on my list: Laundry detergents.

Freshly washed clothes should smell freshly washed, like the artificial smell of "Fresh Linen" or "Wild Frangipani". I don't buy the super expensive detergents, I usually use a powder, and like to buy the same one because I like the smell. Summer Breeze I believe. I use fabric softener. I've bought the no-phosphate types for a long time because I used to put the grey water out onto the lawn, in a vain attempt to soften the clay soil in the suburbs.

Last week, the baby girl had some sensitive skin rash thing on her face. Perhaps it's the laundry powder! thought I, and into the shopping trolley I put these:

Picked up in Coles as part of my normal shopping, cool. Reasonably priced- in fact a bit cheaper per wash than my usual stuff, cooler. And it works, and smells like fresh laundry. Kid's clothes, my sweaty walking clothes, some cloth nappies, towels, everything came out like clean laundry! I'm happy. Because I didn't have to go to a great deal of trouble or expense to make a more gentle choice. I also like the gigantic bulk pack and the tap. It reminds me of a box of wine.

If you want to find out more about this particular brand, you can go here, and watch that ad.

And Jodi has some lovely organic, gentle things for bubs up for grabs at her place.

Oh. and the baby girl's rash? Gone!

S.